Operation X
by Sly Foxxx
Summary: This is a story about Ratchet after the fourth game. He is called up on a special mission in another Galaxy. Find out the rest by reading it. My first fic. Chapter four is up. Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

_AN: Ok well this is my first fanfiction story and well, don't expect much I really should be studying at the moment but this idea popped into my head I had a strange desire to write… That and I am at home sick today and I needed something to do. Well I have decided not to make each chapter too long because, no offence to people who do it, long chapters bore the hell outta me. If you wish, I could make each chapter longer but I'm not even sure if people are going to read this so… yeah… This is about Ratchet after the fourth instalment in the series. I don't think it really has much to do with the others so don't go crazy if two pieces of information clash with each other. Remember, I'm new at this Ratchet has been called up by an army of another galaxy. Here he is basically unknown in this galaxy and he is not sure why he has been drafted. Oh also, Clank isn't in this one. It would probably waste time coming up with an excuse for him not being there but, to be honest, I don't really like Clank. Sorry to all you Clank fans. I am not sure what genre it falls into so I'll leave it on general. Here we go…_

* * *

Ratchet faced the alarm clock blazing in his ear and slapped it off with his hand. He forced his sleep deprived eyes open and starred lazily at his uniform handing outside his wardrobe. He tore off the covers castrating him and swung his legs off the bed. He slowly rose and reached out, stretching his muscles. They were still sore from yesterday and rubbed them gently with his opposite hands. 

Ratchet walked across the room passing the spare bed that had been empty since he had arrived there, and removed his clothes from their hangers. He put them on, starting to feel more awake, slipped his boots on and decided to head down to breakfast.

Ratchet locked the door behind him and walked down the well lit, metal corridor that headed towards the cafeteria. He passed several lifeless rooms. Although there were still plenty of people here due to it being such a large and important base, it was still too vacant for Ratchets taste during the last few days. Almost the entire base had gone on a mission to a plane Ratchet hadn't heard of. It was nothing extremely important, more like an exercise for familiarity of the battle field and confidence, he was told but still, nonetheless, it was some form of action. Ratchet thrived for it. He dipped his head and softly sighed before opening the large door and entering the hall.

It was a large room. Big enough to fit three hundred people but currently, there were only about thirty. Ratchet headed towards the centre of the room where breakfast was being served. He grabbed a plate and stacked it full of pancakes. Ratchet took his plate and approached some of the plusian cadets nearby who had already started eating. Ratchet hadn't had any real friends here. He had been here for almost two weeks, Ratchet thinks, but when he seems to get along with some, they are shipped away and never heard from again. "Hey, can I sit here?" he asked the oldest looking cadet guzzling down his bacon as if it was going to disappear.

The purple plusian, looking slightly older than Ratchet, looked up at him with his beady eyes, "Sure, grab a seat," and patted the chair next to him.

Ratchet pulled out the seat and sat down, placing his tray out in front of him on the table. There were four of them sitting down at the table now. A young male sitting across from him nodded and smiled at Ratchet when he sat down. Ratchet returned the nod and smiled back. The other pulsian, a young female looked at Ratchet, tiling her head with a puzzled look on her face. Ratchet wasn't sure what was wrong but ignored it and picked up his knife and fork, getting ready to eat. He was first interrupted by the first pulsian he had spoken to. He swallowed the bulky mush of food cramped into his mouth and released a satisfying belch. He threw his knife and fork onto the now empty plate and turned to look at Ratchet. He stuck out his hand in a welcoming manner, "Hi I'm Fenal. This is Handa and Dina" he point to the other two, he examined Ratchets face rather rudely and casually asked him, "Who are you and where are you from?"

"I'm Ratchet from planet Veldin," Ratchet said but was surprised when the young female Dina jumped a little from her seat, almost knocking Ratchet's pancakes from the table.

"_The_ Ratchet?" she whispered in disbelief. She started rummaging frantically in her bag beside her chair. She grabbed a magazine and slammed it on the table. It was a copy of 'Heroes of our time' and on the front cover was Ratchet accepting an award of some kind. Dina pushed the magazine in front of Ratchet, again almost assaulting his pancakes again. "Please, oh please will you sign it for me?" She whipped out a pen and rammed it in his face without taking her eyes of him for a second, completely ignoring the smirks of Handa.

Ratchet looked rather embarrassed as the other two just watched them covering their mouths with their hands as if it prevented Ratchet from hearing them snickering away. He sighed and agreed to give her his autograph by removing the pen from her shaking hand and signing 'Ratchet' on the front page. Ratchet was usually bombarded by fans but he never really got used to it. He still smiles awkwardly at the fans and gets on with his life. As soon as Ratchet finished writing, Dina ripped the magazine away from him as soon as Ratchet lifted the pen from it and gazed at it, starry eyed. The one that hadn't spoken yet, Handa, shook his head and lightly thumped Dina in the shoulder. "I'm sorry dude," he apologised to Ratchet, ignoring Dina's returning punch, "My sister's a bit weird". Handa pointed his index finger to his brain and swirled it around in circles indicating Dina was crazy.

Ratchet smiled and began to eat his breakfast while Dina protested about her being insane. Ratchet was still smiling and almost choked on his food laughing once throughout the whole meal. Him and his new 'friends' sat at the table for about an hour, talking about past experiences on the field, making jokes and just talking. Ratchet felt warm and fuzzy inside. He hadn't felt this good or accepted since he arrived on the base. From what he had learned during the conversations with then plusians, Fenal was a slightly impertinent at times without realising it but still was nice when you would catch him in the right mood. He looked like a man you wouldn't like to mess with. Handa and Dina were brother and sister. Handa was light-hearted and leisurely. Everything you would expect a soldier not to be. He seemed to be Ratchet's best friend out of the trio as he always looked on the bright side of life. Dina was young and rather innocent. She, like Handa, didn't seem to be soldier material and Ratchet sometimes caught her looking at Ratchet oddly but would look away when Ratchet would catch her. Ratchet just hoped that these friends, unlike everyone else he seemed to have gotten close to, would last for at least twenty four hours.

After saying goodbye to his friends and leaving the cafeteria, Ratchet decided to head down to the shooting range at the opposite end of the base as he did every morning. He quickly paced back to his room in order to pick up his helmet and security key. He wanted to get in some early practice because at this time in the morning, nobody was there. When he arrived, he slipped his card key into the socket, opening the door. As soon as he entered the room, he noticed he wasn't alone.

There was another person there. A species that Ratchet had never seen before. He was tall, pale in the flesh, small ears unlike Ratchets and a semi-muscular body. He didn't have any fur on his body except for a small, shortly cut, brown patch covering the top and back of his head. He was wearing an outfit similar to Ratchet and the rest of the soldiers but it was a light shade of grey. He looked like he was concentrating so hard on the range; he didn't even notice Ratchet entering. Baffled, Ratchet slowly walked up to the stall beside him on the right to watch him in action. The person stopped shooting as soon as Ratchet stood beside him but he didn't lower the gun resting on his right shoulder. "Pick up the gun Ratchet," he said calmly and softly without removing his right eye from behind the crosshairs, "I hear you're quite the sharp shooter. I'll see about that". After the last sentence, his grip on the rifle tightened and his eye squinted but still, he refused to look at Ratchet. Ratchet risked a snappy glance at his face. It was lifeless and emotionless.

Ratchet, looking bewildered, obeyed the stranger by hoisted the gun resting in the stall and cocked it just like his strange opponent had done. He started down the range. It looked like a small park area. There were small hills and trees realistically scattered around the gallery. The field was roughly sixty meters wide and 100 meters long. A large area that tested observation, reflexes and accuracy. There was a long pause as they both just stood there. Watching, waiting. For what, Ratchet was not sure. But as soon as the thought popped in his head, the first target caught the corner of Ratchet's eye. It was a holographic Tyhrranoid only about twenty meters away from him. Ratchet swivelled the large rifle towards the target but before the crosshairs even got near the target, the projection had already burst and evaporated into thin air. Ratchet didn't have time to ponder about how he had destroyed it so fast due to the next target bursting out of a nearby hedge. Ratchet swung his gun around again but before he could even set himself up, it was shot as well. Ratchet couldn't believe it. Again and again the stranger beat Ratchet to the target. Even when multiple enemies showed up, their images were dispersed within a heartbeat. He even took out the paratroopers dropping for the ceiling one hundred meters in the distance. This was crazy. Ratchet couldn't believe what he was seeing. When the final hologram had been destroyed, they both just stood there silently, neither of them daring to move a muscle. Ratchet's eyes were widened in disbelief. After a quiet minute, the stranger lowered his gun and threw it on the ground like a young child loosing interest in a toy. Ratchet removed the rifle from his shoulder but still held it firmly in his hands. He stared down at his gun, realising for the first time that he hadn't even fired the gun. He didn't have a chance too. The elite soldier walked towards the door, as if he forgot Ratchet was even there. Ratchet lifted his head, realising that he was leaving. Without thinking he yelled at him just as he was turning the corner outside the door, "Who are you?".

The stranger halted inside the door frame and turned his head half way so Ratchet could see the side of his pale face. When he spoke, his voice was chilling and haunting. Although he was whispering, the sound of his voice echoed throughout the empty shooting range, "I am the ultimate soldier. I am the ultimate being. I am Hoskins," and with that, he walked off into the vacant corridor leaving Ratchet behind standing in the room, his gun still in his grasp, completely perplexed about what had just happened in the last five minutes.

_

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AN: Yep well there you go. Chapter one. I hope you liked it. I don't mind criticism as long as it isn't TOO harsh. I have no idea when the next chapter is going to be updated but please leave a review so I know that people are actually READING it because there is no point on writing as second chapter if nobody is. Until next time, _

_Sly Foxxx_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

_AN: Ok. Maybe there were quite a lot of grammatical mistakes in the previous chapter but now I've got an editor that knows what he's doing so everything's going to be alright :) Oh and that castrating thing was not meant to be there. A friend put it there without me knowing. Yeah, I killed him so now everyone's happy. Well, except him of course, being dead and all._

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So let me get this straight: he didn't miss a single shot?" Handa asked Ratchet.

"No. It was insane. I've never seen an aim like his." Ratchet shifted uncomfortably on the couch. "Then he said he was the 'ultimate being' or something."

"Dude, that's messed up right there," Handa said, flopping back onto the couch next to Ratchet and closing his eyes. "Well, at least he didn't kill you."

Ratchet looked at Handa confused. "Wait! What makes you think he would've?"

Handa stood up and started pacing around the couch. Ratchet followed him with his eyes. "Oh c'mon Ratchet, a creepy guy in a shooting range all by himself, calling himself the 'ultimate dude'?" Handa walked behind the couch and leaned against the back rest. "A guy like that is definitely looking for trouble. All I'm saying is that he's a man you don't wanna mess with."

"Yes," Ratchet agreed, nodding his head. Ratchet's eyes wandered around the room. They found the clock sitting on the wall and he noticed it was time for training. He nudged Handa with his elbow and pointed towards the clock. Handa understood and they made their way towards the training grounds.

When they arrived they met Fenal and Dina who were suited up and ready to go. Ratchet and Handa approached them and they began to talk to each other. They were outside now, at the back of the base. In front of them was a large grass area covered in obstacles of all sorts. "Alright ladies, line up!" came a booming voice from behind them.

Dina jumped a little in fright, "God damn it, he always scares me like that," she whispered to Ratchet before running to her spot along with all the cadets.

Ratchet saw the man responsible for making Dina jump. It was General Racian, one of the fiercest drill sergeants Ratchet had ever met. Each of Ratchet's mornings was plagued by muscles made stiff by his drills. He was a well built man; he had large shoulders, but rather short legs making him look as if he might fall over at any given moment. He had horrible, green skin and a thick, brown bushy moustache. Ratchet disliked him. He had a good reason too. This man ran Ratchet ragged. He would always look for an excuse to make Ratchet run an extra ten laps or an extra hundred push-ups. Ratchet wasn't sure why Racian despised him but had decided not to ask because he knew he would just be punished even further.

"Today, once again, we, and when I say 'we' and mean you, will be running the obstacle course," Racian said while pacing up and down the ranks of nervous soldiers with a content smile on his face, not looking at any of them. Racian stopped in front of Ratchet to look at him. "Anyone got a problem with that?"

Ratchet looked at Racian square in the eyes. Racians rancid breath rolled over him like a wave but he kept a straight face. "No, sir," he replied blankly.

Racian stood right in front of Ratchet and shoved his face in front of his. "That's a good boy, Ratchet," he whispered, a complete look of hatred riddled on his face. Ratchet mirrored Racian's facial expression and didn't move from his spot. They glared at each other, neither of them daring to blink. After a short while, Racian's eyes softened and walked away from him as if it hadn't happened. Ratchets eyes followed him, full of hatred. "Well?" Racian shouted, addressing the whole group, "Stop staring at me with those idiotic expressions on your faces, get out there and run your asses off! Move, move, move!" The soldiers sprang into life and dashed frantically to the starting posts. Ratchet, didn't react the same way. He casually walked over to the line and readied to begin.

Racian walked over to the starting posts and blew his whistle. The pack of cadets immediately set off, jumping hurdles, climbing walls and darting through tires. Ratchet found himself in pole position by the start of the second lap. He remembered that when he first arrived, most of the cadets were in much better physical shape and than him and often lapped him within the first five or so laps. Now, over the days, he has scrapped his way out of last place and he could even manage to keep up with the leader. Today, though, was the first time he had ever been in front. He jumped the hurdles with grace and climbed the climbing frames and walls like a monkey in a tree.

After about 15 or so laps, Ratchet wasn't counting, Racian blew his whistle again and the remaining cadets, who were still on the obstacle course, collapsed onto the ground. Ratchet, however, remained standing and he felt rather pleased with himself. He had remained in front and had even lapped half the cadets. Ratchet felt the fittest he had ever felt in his life.

Everyone made their way back to the starting posts as they did everyday. Ratchet strolled proudly with his head held high looking as though he hadn't run the course at all. "Well, that was pathetic," Racian exclaimed, dismissing them all with a wave of his hand. "Ratchet, you stay behind," Racian said to him.

Ratchet rolled his eyes. "What could I have possibly done wrong this time," he grumbled quietly to himself. Ratchet stood in front of him, trying not to give him an excuse for doing another fifteen laps.

"Ratchet," Racian grumbled, looking into his eyes, "Come to room one hundred and sixty-two at seven pm tonight. Do not tell anyone about this or I will deal with you myself." And with that, Racian left Ratchet staring at his back as he walked away from him, head down. His eyebrows furrowed and he thought for a few seconds. He was now alone in the grounds; everyone else had left. Ratchet began to slowly walk back towards the main building.

"What the hell was that about?" he mumbled to himself, "Could I be in trouble again? Is Racian going to finally tell me why I'm here?" He lost his train of thought due to a feeling he couldn't shrug. He felt as if somebody was spying on him. He casually scanned the area, trying not to look to obvious about his actions and saw a shadow lurking at the corner of one of the buildings. Ratchet did not have long to stare as the mysterious shadow quickly disappeared as soon as he saw it. Ratchet gazed at the corner, half expecting the shadow to reappear again. After a minute, he shrugged his shoulders and forgot about it. What ever it was, it was gone now and Ratchet decided it was nothing and headed to the common room where the plusians were waiting for him.

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"Jesus, Ratchet, you've gotten so fast that I can't even keep up with you for half a lap," Dina remarked, sitting on the couch next to Handa in the crowded common room.

"I've gotten a lot stronger and I feel healthier too," Ratchet said, flexing his triceps while sitting next to the television. He opened up a bottle of water he plucked from the table beside him and began to drink it.

"Well, you do tend to put on a bit of weight when sitting at home scratching your ass all day," Handa joked. Ratchet threw the pillow he was sitting on at Handa's head but he blocked it with a pillow of his own.

"Handa, how did a person like you get into the army?" Ratchet asked cheekily.

Handa laughed. "Well, I wasn't exactly the intellectual type and well, I needed a job. Pure and simple," he closed his eyes, put his hands behind his head and relaxed.

Ratchet turned to Dina, "What about you?"

"Oh well, I just don't want this idiot to go out and get himself killed so I came along to keep an eye on him," she replied, smiling. She leaned over and give Handa a slight nudge in the ribs. "What about you Ratchet? Why would an all-star like you come to a small galaxy like this?"

Ratchet shifted uncomfortably in his seat, "Well, to be honest, I'm not sure. The president of another galaxy I saved a while ago told me she that the president of this plant needed me and so I went."

Ratchet had thought over it on the way back to the common room and had decided not to tell them about the special meeting tonight. Racian had made it clear he was not to. By the tone of Racians voice this meeting seemed to be important, so he dared not risk it.

"Did she tell you why they wanted you here?" Handa asked, now seemingly interested by shifting forward to sit on the edge of his seat.

"No…," Ratchet trailed off by turning his head away from them, trying to change the subject.

Handa, as if he had just read Ratchet's mind, began to talk about the television show shown last night and the topic was quickly forgotten about.

The cadets had a fulfilling day on the base. They went to the gym to workout for two hours after lunch and had a shooting range competition just before dinner. At ten to seven, Ratchet found himself in the common room once again. He spent a lot of time there as they had a full sized pool table, a large television screen and a game station. It was a place to blow off steam and socialise with the other soldiers. This time though, he was alone. The rest were still at dinner. Ratchet told them he wasn't hungry and stayed behind while they all wandered off for dinner. Ratchet rose from the seat he was sitting in and wandered off into the corridor, making his was to room 162.

The halls were silent and all he could hear was the thumping of his own feet against the metal floor. As he got closer and closer, Ratchet felt as though the passage was getting darker and darker but he continued nonetheless. Ratchet shuddered. Once again, he felt as though he was being watched so he stayed on full alert for any signs of movement. He decreased the speed of his walk. The corridor was almost pitch-black. Ratchet could see a rough outline of the shape of the corridor but he was getting nervous. Why, he wasn't sure. He continued to walk at a slow pace down the suspicious corridor. He read the door numbers as he passed them. 156,158,160… 162. He stood in front of the door for a few seconds. He was having second thoughts. He pressed his ear up against the door and listened in, hoping to hear something. There was nothing. It was perfectly silent. He checked his wrist watch. Seven o'clock on the dot. He rested his hand on the door handle and pressed down. The door opened and Ratchet entered the room.

_

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AN: Just wanted to thank Hylic for checking my story before posting for mistakes and stuff. No idea when the next chapters up but I have the next two weeks off so I might do it then. This chapter was posted within a week because I was writing quite a bit tonight. Don't forget to review after reading! Until next time,_

_Sly Foxxx_

_EN: w00t! I am teh grammar H4x0r! LOL OMG I R TEH BEST!11!one!11(Hylic Soul)_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

_AN: Yes, yes, sorry, I KNOW! I said I would write this during my two weeks off but I went out everyday on the first week and the second week, I had so much homework that I only finished it Sunday night. It's here now so… read._

_I really appreciate the input from you guys. Thanks to everyone who reviewed. Liquid Olimar is my friend so no point commenting. _

_8017z – Yes I think I should redo the first chapter but I'll do it when I'm finished. I need to get rid of that castrating thing :P _

_Rex Chaos – Yes I know I messed up there. I couldn't phrase it right. I meant Sasha told him about the job if that helps. If it doesn't, it's not really important so I wouldn't worry about it._

_Miss Trippy – I don't have a clue what you mean by the way I write but thanks for the comment :P _

_Finally: Hylic Soul – grammar mistakes, TOTALLY YOUR FAULT. No, I'm just kidding. I really appreciate what your doing. You rock Now, ON WITH THE CHAPTER…_

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"Close the door behind you," said a voice from the end of the room.

Ratchet immediately did as he was told. He quietly closed the door and searched for the owner of the voice. Ratchet saw nothing. The room was poorly lit by a small light hovering above a chair placed in front of him. He stood on the spot next to the door and held his breath, awaiting further instructions. He didn't have to wait long when the same voice said, "Sit," demandingly.

Ratchet reached the chair and sat down, obediently. Ratchet was still looking for the source of the voice but it was nowhere to be found. _It's to damn dark_ Ratchet thought to himself. It was as if they read his mind when the lights brightened up and Ratchet could see who he was talking to. There were two men sitting behind a table in front of Ratchet. One of them was easily recognisable for Ratchet. Racian. Ratchet couldn't help noticing his hateful stare. Ratchet would've stared back but his interest was caught by the other man. He had a cream coloured skin and was dressed in a smart suit, adorned with numerous badges. He didn't have bulging muscles or a killer look. He had a thin body, or at least it looked like it when compared to Racian.

The stranger stood up and walked around to the front of the table. He locked eyes with Ratchet and leaned onto the table. "Do you know why you're here Ratchet?"

Ratchet looked straight back at him, trying not to make it seem to obvious he was scanning his suit for some identification. "Is it because I've been swearing at and mocking Racian from behind his back?"

Racian jumped out of his seat and slammed his hands on the table. "Why you little punk!" he bellowed at Ratchet.

"Please Racian, now is not the time," the man said, closing his eyes but remaining calm. Racian reluctantly obeyed him and sat down after giving Ratchet a rude gesture involving his middle finger. The man opened his eyes again and chuckled, "No, that is not why. I am General Jervis, operator of this fine establishment." He took his eyes off Ratchet and began pacing slowly up and down the room. "You see, we have heard of your great accomplishments in other galaxies and we are in need of your… expertise."

Ratchet twisted his face in bewilderment. "My expertise in what?" he asked.

Jervis stopped pacing and faced Ratchet, "Combat. We have called you here as we are in need of your help. A supply convoy was destroyed recently as it passed a nearby planet. We sent other ships to investigate but sadly they were shot down. The crew were all captured and put to death before they could report back to us." He continued walking. "A few days later, a heavy assault was taken place on a city not far from here. Many innocent people were killed and the city was left in ruins. We have been sending over operatives and troops too discovered the leader of these atrocities." Racian flung a file in the table at Ratchet who caught it and opened the front page.

"That man there is General Libra, head of the planets army. He is most likely the main man behind these attacks but we are not 100 certain." Jervis pointed at the picture in the centre of the file. Ratchet gasped. _This man has the same physical features as that Hoskins guy_ thought Ratchet. _They must be the same species._ Jervis noticed Ratchet's reaction to the photo and looked at him. "Do you recognise him?" he asked.

Ratchet shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "No sir. I've never seen him before," he said without removing his eyes from the file.

Jervis didn't look entirely convinced but continued with his story. "He has been attacking us none stop for the past few days. I had been hoping to let you train more but sadly, we do not have the time. We need you to go down there and kill General Libra."

Ratchet lifted his head, "But sir, where did I fit in all this?"

"Turn the page," Jervis said, and so Ratchet did, "This is a map of the enemy's main base. We have taken satellite photos and analysed every possible entry and exiting point and we have found here," Jervis said, pointing to a woodland area to the south of the structure, "to be the best. You will be dropped down two miles away from an enemy outpost. Your first objective will be to capture it. This outpost is vital, as currently, we cannot transmit any form of communication with the surface: they have radar jammers. We will then send a small communications group down to give you further orders. Is that understood?"

Ratchet collected his thoughts. He felt a bit uneasy. This wasn't just another crazy, evil villain Ratchet had now gotten used to fighting. This was an entire well trained, planetary army. The amount of soldiers, tanks and aircraft Ratchet would have to fight single handed would be overwhelming. "General Jervis, I'm only one person. How can I take out an entire army?" Ratchet asked him.

Jervis sat down on the table and folded his arms as if he was expecting the question, "Oh don't worry about that. I have four other top notch soldiers all lined up and ready to go. You will meet them now."

Jervis motioned Racian with a small nod in Ratchets direction. Racian pushed his chair back and trudged towards Ratchet. He grabbed him under the shoulder and hoisted Ratchet out of the chair. Ratchet fought back, trying to loosen Racians grip. Racian opened the door and pulled Ratchet out of the room. Ratchet looked back at Jervis who was calmly sitting down on the table, half smiling at Ratchet. "Good luck Ratchet and god speed," he said, saluting him just before the door closed behind him.

Now it was just Ratchet and Racian in the dark hallway. Neither of them looked at each other. Racian sighed heavily and walked down the dark corridor. Ratchet stood there, not sure what to do until Racian barked at him, "Hurry up." Ratchet obeyed and followed him at his heels. It was quiet. The only sound was their feet echoing off the walls. About half way, Racian came to a sudden halt. Ratchet imitated him. Racian didn't turn around forcing Ratchet to just stare in wonderment at his back. Before Ratchet could react, Racian swivelled around and punched Ratchet in his cheek. The heavy blow sent Ratchet flying into the metal wall with a giant thud that echoed throughout the hallway. Ratchet slumped against the wall, reeling from the unexpected, cheap shot. He felt himself hoisted off the ground. He opened his eyes. When they came into focus, all he could see was Racians face. "Now let me make this clear to you. I don't like you. I detest you. Do you know why?" Ratchet shook his head. "It's because this was MY mission. I was the one being sent down to that piece of crap they call a planet. It was my job to take out the terrorist leader. My mission. My glory. Do you understand?" he said, his look intensifying with each word. "You just had to turn up and snatch it away from me."

Racian released Ratchet from his grip, as if forgetting he was still there. Ratchet lifted himself off the ground, and readied himself for another attack. Ratchet's lip was bleeding. Racian clenched his fists, turning them white. He then turned back and continued walking down the hall. "Hurry up, you scrawny idiot."

Ratchet glared at his back but continued to follow Racian down the hallway. He was now given a new reason for doing the mission: to shove Racian's face in it. A smile broke out on the corner of his mouth. He relished the thought of beating Racian. Ratchet wiped his mouth once more, clearing it of any leftover blood.

Eventually, they reached another door. Racian stood in front of it and gripped the door handle with his large hand. "In here," he said, pushing the door open. Ratchet walked into the room and the door slammed shut behind him.

He was in a room around the same size of the mission briefing room but the lamps hanging on the wall brightened the room. "Ratchet? I thought you would be here." Ratchet recognised the voice almost instantly. It was Handa. He greeted Ratchet with a friendly smile and he rested his hand on Ratchets shoulder. "When you said you didn't know why you were here I knew you were hiding something. I thought it might be this but I wasn't sure and since I wasn't allowed to mention this to anybody, well, you can understand the situation." He pulled his hand back and turned towards the other people in the room. "Well I might as well introduce you to the team. Just in case you didn't know my name, it Handa," he grinned, "sniping expert believe it or not. I can shoot a can from six hundred meters away." He lifted his hands, absorbing the recoil from an imaginary sniper shot.

"This lovely lady here in the corner is Kali," he introduced, pointing to a petit, blue, mouse-like female Aluy who turned to them. She didn't look like a soldier but she wore a lightly shaded grey uniform. The same that Handa was wearing. Kali lifted her head on the sound of her name. She got out of the chair, walked over and shook Ratchet's hand firmly.

"Hey, I'm Kali. I am going to be the medic and technology expert. I'll be handling any problems you guys have with your equipment, locks, injuries, issues like that. Nice to finally meet you, Ratchet." She let go of his hand and stood beside him smiling. "I've heard a lot about you and you adventures. I hope I can hear some of them one day."

"Ehh… yeah, sure. No problem" Ratchet said, grinning awkwardly back.

"And this guy over here," Handa pointed to a Geon. His fur was a stealthy green. He looked as if he worked out to some extent. He had fairly large muscles but nothing compared to Racian's. He was sitting in a chair in front of a television. He turned to them and kindly bowed his head in a sign of respect. "He calls himself Demo. He's a demolition expert. He claims he could blow up an entire enemy city but I think it's all just hot air."

He then turned towards the window and instead of his usual, heart-warming smile, he tilted his head to the side slightly and said quietly. "Finally there is that guy standing beside the window." Ratchet looked over in the direction Handa was pointing and froze on the spot. It was Hoskins. He didn't turn to greet Ratchet at all. In fact, Ratchet wouldn't have even noticed him if Handa hadn't pointed him out. Hoskins just gazed out the window as if something outside was distracting him. "I've tried talking the dude but he keeps on shooing me away like a fly. After a while, I just didn't bother anymore and left him there. The weird thing is that he hasn't budged from the window since I got here."

"Wait here." Ratchet told him. He didn't wait for a reply. Ratchet simply walked over and stood beside Hoskins. He didn't seem to notice or care that Ratchet was rudely staring at the side of his face.

"What do you want?" he asked, slowly. He didn't remove his eyes from the window.

"Who are you?" Ratchet knew just by the look of him that he wasn't a man for small talk so he got straight to the point.

"You asked me this question before, so I see no need to repeat myself," he answered, sternly.

"Why are you here?"

There was a long pause between them. Ratchet could feel everyone else's eyes locked on to them both. Hoskins chuckled, to Ratchet's surprise. "All in good time but for now, we must rest. We set out early tomorrow morning and I bet your just itching to get some action." He shook his head violently as if he was punishing himself for showing emotion and the smile quickly faded.

"Tomorrow morning?" Ratchet turned to Handa. He simply shrugged his shoulders, the information being new to him too.

"Yes. Now go catch some sleep because you won't get any where were going."

"Umm… ok then" Ratchet said slowly and quietly. He turned away from Hoskins but quickly caught sight of what Hoskins had been looking at all this time. It was a large warehouse. There was a patrol of around ten soldiers outside, circling the building. They were all armed heavily, from what Ratchet could see. He couldn't help but wonder what was in there that had Hoskins so interested. He returned to the group.

"Hey, who died and made him king?" Handa snorted. He had obviously heard every word of the conversation.

Ratchet ignored his question. "Well I'm going to bed. He said we'll be leaving early tomorrow."

"Yeah, alright. I guess so 'cus I'm not nice when I'm cranky in the morning," Handa admitted. He patted Ratchet on the back and waved goodnight to Kali and Demo, leaving Hoskins in the dark. He then walked out the door and retreated to his room.

Shortly after, Kali turned to Ratchet and said, "We should go too. Night Ratchet." She motioned Demo with her hand and they left together leaving Ratchet and Hoskins alone.

Ratchet didn't say anything. He faced the door and rested his hand on it when, "Ratchet". Ratchet turned around to see what he wanted. There was another pause. Hoskins was fond of them. Then, "Do not disappoint me." Ratchets chose not to say anything. He pulled the door open and walked out. He stood there at the door, in deep thought. _Well, here we go again_ he thought before walking down the corridor, back to his room.

_

* * *

AN: Ok, I kinda rushed this one because people have been pressuring me to write this one before the exams. So I did. Here it is. I thought it could have been a bit better but they/you would have to wait about… two months? Nuh-uh, I don't think so. Long wait but hopefully, it'll be worth it ;)_

_Oh and yes I do just randomly make up other alien races. Aluy and Geon just came outta no where if that settles and disturbance. Aluy is a small kind of mouse looking creature while the Geon is like a humanoid Labrador (the dog :P)._

_If you have any questions, just ask me. Either in an e-mail or a review._

_Sly Foxxx_

_EN: This man is evil! It takes me a good 2 months to get down in front of the computer to write and wouldn't you know it? There's his thing and I have to edit it. Curse your requirement of my superfluous ski11z! _

_-Grammar mistakes: my fault? Just for that, I'm not correcting your review replies! _

_-I do indeed 'rock', my friend, I do indeed._

_Hylic Soul_


	4. Chapter 4

_AN: Jesus my last update was… MAY! . Holy shit. I'm really sorry. I've been pretty busy the past few… months. Ok, ok that's a bad excuse… Well it's here now. I thank you for the feed back in the past chapter. It made me happy to know that you liked it Oh, you might want to re-read because you, like many people, might of forgotten what the hell is going on XD Enjoy the chapter._

Ratchet woke to the annoying sound of his alarm clock going off, yet again. He turned it off and rose from his bed. He felt as worn out as he had before he went to bed last night. He was awake for most of it thinking about the mission. _How long was I awake? Until 4?_ He heavily sighed, shook his head and reached for his clothes that were always hung outside the wardrobe. He quickly changed and left his quarters. Instead of his usual stroll down the hall to the cafeteria, he turned right, leading him to a landing bay. The smell of hot breakfast followed him from the cafeteria, trying to persuade him to turn back but Ratchet just closed his eyes, trying to shut out its allure. His stomach growled. Ratchet promised it he would get food on the journey over. He glanced at his watch. _5 minutes left._ He switched to a gentle stride down the hall and eventually reached the door leading to the landing bay. He pushed open the door and walked in.

This area filled almost a third of the entire base. The sound of metal banging together and mechanics at their work echoed off the wall making the bay sound busier than it looked. As it was early in the morning and this was a secret operation, there were not many people in the bay, bar a few mechanics working on the military drop ships and fighter jets lined up one by one on the side of the hanger opposite the artillery and hovercrafts. One small ship lay down just in front of the vehicle exit across the room from him. Ratchet jogged over to the people standing outside it.

"About time you decided to show up. We were about to leave without you," Handa joked.

"Sorry, I had a rough night," Ratchet said.

Jervis coughed to get the groups attention back on him. "As I was saying, the drop ship contains all your needs for this mission. Weapons, food, gadgets and so on. We have not added any form of communication devices as they will be easily picked up by the enemy, surrendering your position. You will only receive these as soon as you take out the radar outpost to the south. This will then allow you to contact us. A small telecom squad will meet up with you there give you further orders. Does anybody have any questions before you leave?"

Handa raised his hand. "Yeah, I got one. I know that we're awesome and all but won't they see us landing?"

Jervis put his hands behind his back. "In order to cover your operation, we will be sending hordes of troops down to the surface. That is bound to draw most of their resources to the frontlines to the north of the base where we plan to attack. This will leave only a small amount of soldiers for you to deal with."

Ratchet looked around the group. Everyone seemed calm about this mission except Hoskins. He was looking at the ground shuffling his feet. It was obvious his mind was elsewhere.

"So what should we do if we…uh encounter any of these guys?" Handa asked. Ratchet noticed Hoskins reaction to the question. He looked at Jervis waiting for an answer.

Jervis raised his left hand and quickly stroked his thumb across his neck. Elimination. Ratchet thought as much. He looked back at Hoskins to see his reaction but quickly turned away when they locked eyes. Ratchet could have sworn Hoskins was trying to see his reaction as well.

"Well," Jervis said aloud after a brief silence, "Since no one has any more questions, you should be on your way. We had to sacrifice the ships speed for its stealth capabilities so the army, which will be departing shortly, should arrive before you get there."

They all got onto the ship. It was fairly small. No larger than his room on the base. "I'll drive," Hoskins stated and sat in the front seat before waiting for confirmation. Ratchet just sat in the seat behind beside Handa with Kali and Demo sitting across.

Hoskins slipped on the head set in front of him. "Back door closing," he said while pulling a lever above him, "Initiating launch sequence." He pushed a button beside him and tugged on the controls causing the ship to lurch forward throwing Handa out of his seat. He gave a quick smile and scrambled back to his seat. Ratchet looked out the small window at the back of the ship. Jervis was walking away from them. He got smaller and smaller as the craft picked up speed. The tanks all sped past them and soon he was watching the base drift away in the distance as the ship rose upwards. Soon the ship shook as it broke through the atmosphere.

**_Seven long, long hours later…_**

"Approaching desired destination. ETA 30 minutes."

Ratchet opened his eyes after hearing Hoskins announcement. Everyone one was asleep due to the lack of activities available on the ship. He looked out the front window to see the planet. The ship had slowed down to a steady pace. It felt as though they were just drifting in space. Ratchet got up approached the pilot's seat. Hoskins was the only one awake. He had his hands gripped loosely on the controls and looked both bored and tired. Ratchet crouched down next to Hoskins who didn't look back. Hoskins hadn't moved at all for the whole journey. His eyes were half open and they just gazed unfocused out the window.

"What?" he asked heavily.

"Do you want me to land the ship? You've been flying for quite a while now without rest," Ratchet said. Hoskins snapped his eyes open and didn't reply. Ratchet continued. "I mean don't worry, I'm a pretty solid pilot. I've had my share of close encounters in the past."

Hoskins turned to face Ratchet. "Are you prepared for another one?" he asked sternly.

Ratchet tilted his head. "What?"

Hoskins nodded towards the planet and then gazed out the window himself. Ratchet looked at the side of his head awkwardly and turned to look himself. He wasn't sure what Hoskins was talking about. They were too far away to see anything on the surface but the green ground, blue sea, white clouds and occasional grey dot here and there didn't seem strange to him. "What are we looking at?"

"You see those grey spots?" he pointed out with his finger.

"Yes," Ratchet replied slowly.

"What do you think they are?"

Ratchet shrugged. "Looks like several urbanized locations around the planet."

"Oh yeah? Look closer," he said quietly.

Ratchet squinted to see what he was talking about. He focused solely on the dots to see if anything weird about them. Then Ratchets ears dropped and heart sank. He knew what Hoskins was talking about and why his face was white. They were missiles. He hadn't noticed them moving before but now he could see clearly that about fifteen of them had been launched from the surface and were now heading for them at on alarming pace.

"Shit," Ratchet muttered.

"Precisely," Hoskins agreed quietly, "Get back in your seat now and tell the others to brace themselves.

Ratchet nodded and hurried back to his seat. He shook the rest of the team awake and told them to fasten their seatbelts.

"What's goin' on?" Handa mumbled rubbing his eye still half asleep.

"We're in for a rough landing," Ratchet said, tightening Handa seal belt for him after attending to his own.

"What's wrong?" Kali asked, imitating Ratchet.

"Missiles inbound," Hoskins shouted back. His eyes didn't leave the window.

Demo looked downwards and hit the armrest of his seat, "Damn it! They found us."

"Well, here we go," Hoskins said more to himself rather than the squad. He jerked the controls to the left causing the ship to flip onto its side. Ratchet shuddered at the sound of the speeding missile passing the ship.

"Missile one, evaded!" he reported. He turned the controls again and the ship was now upside down. Another two missiles went zooming by. "Missile two and three evaded" he shouted again.

Ratchet felt queasy. He normally didn't mind the spinning around when he was driving the ship. He was tossed around helplessly like a rag doll not knowing when to prepare for a full 360 degrees loop. At least he wasn't doing as bad as some of them. Kali across had her hands covering her face and squealed every time the ship made a sudden movement. Demo had a bag over his mouth, desperately trying to breathe. He looked over at Handa who threw his hands in the air and laughed in sync with Kali's screams.

"Missile seven avoided! C'mon! Hang in there!" Hoskins screamed.

Hoskins again and again outmanoeuvred the missiles with each new missile came an elevated sense of danger. The drop ship was forced to do another manoeuvre causing the ship to fly upside down again. A red light above the cockpit started to flash and a small alarm went off. The red light filled the small area causing Kali to scream louder and Demo to swear discordantly. Handa at this point stopped laughing and started to panic. Ratchet winced in pain as Handa desperately griped onto his arm tightly.

"Missile twelve avoided!"

The ship began to shake roughly. The constant flashing light was hurting Ratchets eyes forcing him the shut them tightly and the intensifying alarm was giving Ratchet a painful headache. He massaged the temple of his head with his fingers in order to stop his head from pounding but it wouldn't work. He began to feel faint. The shifting, screaming, yelling and flashing were making him feel weak.

"Missile fourteen avoided! Just one left!" Hoskins yelled back.

The ship lurched to its side, causing Ratchets head to hit against his chest. He didn't attempt to fight gravity. He just didn't have the strength. He did however open his eyes for a brief second. In his line of sight was a passed out Demo and Kali. He shut his eyes again and could only feel the sweat drops trickling down his face and body.

"Here we go!" Hoskins yelled again.

Ratchet was grinding his teeth together as the ship made one final twist. Suddenly, the ship shook very aggressively and another louder and quicker paced alarm went off right next to his ear.

"Shit! We've been hit!" Hoskins howled, pressing buttons and twisting the dials frantically.

The ship spiralled around and around. Ratchets forced all his strength towards looking out the front window. The planet was getting larger and larger with every passing second. The tension which filled his body a minute ago was now replaced with a sickening calmness, the alarm was somehow deafened by the sound of nothing and the flashing light seemed to slowly burn itself out t until nothing was left except utter darkness…

_AN: Ok, well finally something interesting has happened in the story. Ratchets out and who knows what happened to the rest of them? I do, that's who. Heehee…:3 Well hopefully you won't have to wait as long as before for an update. If you read this, please review. I really do appreciate reviews of all kinds. Constructive ones are greeted the most though all of them let me know that someone out there is reading _

_Until next time which I promise won't be sometime next year ; )_

_Sly Foxxx_

_EN: Hello world. It's true, I'm not dead, I've simply just receded into the French Alps to meditate on the theoretical physics of grammar, and correct said mistakes of the silly Irishmen who come to me :3_

_Want to me for help with your stories? Email me at __sumcrazyguythefrenchalps.fr_

_Hi Miss Trippy! Hi Rocket-Propelled Grenade (formerly 8017z and for some reason has me on his fave authors list)!_

_Luv you all! ;) – ('Cept for you: Orpheus B. Carrie)_


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